Sleeping Regally
by Sailor Latias
Summary: "You get points for trying, but you ran right where she wanted." "I knew exactly what I was doing." "Then why did you do it?" "Because I believed it could be undone, and it was."


Aurora awoke from a dreamless slumber to the odd sound of silence so loud her ears were ringing to compensate. Not even Phillip's usual heavy breathing was heard, and their son, who was still unable to fully sleep through nights just yet, did not even come close to waking for his nightly feeding. Fortunately, she heard him gurgle and shift in his cot, which meant he was still breathing, and likely dreaming. That was good enough, for she could not see him in the near-total darkness of the room.

The clock at her bedside, flashing a bright red 11:37pm, had her sighing in annoyance for waking at such an unnecessary hour. The princess turned to her husband, the man to whom she was betrothed and the proud father of their beautiful baby, and slipped her hand beneath the covers to grasp at his. She found it lying idly, and stroked his fingers with her thumb, smiling to herself when Phillip's large hand closed around her single digit as gently as one would expect from a child. He too emitted a small noise as he rolled over to face her and slept blissfully on.

Aurora giggled quietly, and leaned in to press a kiss to her beloved's forehead. She let the touch linger, nuzzling the spot with the tip of her nose a second more before pulling away.

She frowned. There was the feeling of dread forming in the pit of her stomach, and the beginning of a crying spell in her throat. Anxiety at night was something she was used to, but recently it had all but subsided. Dr. Hopper even congratulated her on her progress, and a night or two every once in a while would not hinder her as it once did upon adjusting to Storybrooke. With the hand left free, Aurora reached behind her blindly for the lamp switch and turned it on. She was not expecting to see anything except the plain white door stationed across the room.

The princess gasped, nearly cried out in her shock, and clutched tightly to Phillip's hand in the hopes he would wake to aid her.

Regina the Queen stood at the foot of their bed in her dark colors and purple, staring at her with the same eyes Maleficent had, gloved hands casually folded before her abdomen. Her lip curled into a teasing smirk at Aurora's reaction.

"Good evening, Aurora," Regina purred, bowing her head slightly, "It seems sleep is evading you as well. I'm not surprised, really..." she lightly shrugged.

Aurora scoffed. The queen sighed.

"Your prince won't wake up until tomorrow morning,"—brown eyes flickered to the crib occupying the space by the dresser—"Neither of them will. In the meantime..." she faltered, dropping her gaze for a split second to lace her fingers together, "I thought we could use this opportunity to talk."

"We haven't much to discuss," the princess responded, perhaps too quickly. She released her lover's hand and folded her arms in front of her chest. "Is there anything else you want... Your Majesty?" she added quietly at the end. She had no energy to stay awake for much longer, but the obvious questions were already forming inside her head.

 _Does Emma know you're here? Did Maleficent send you? I know she's back. You wouldn't be here if she was not_. _I am not a fool_.

Regina's tone hardened and she seemed to lose patience. "On the contrary, _princess_ , we do have some order of business, and if you want to get your beauty rest tonight then I suggest we get this over with."

She managed a half-hearted glare and hoped it would suffice. "Invite me to tea tomorrow. I am tired _now_. I'll even bring the crumpets."

Before she could touch the switch to her lamp, a hand grabbed her wrist. Blue eyes widened in surprise for the second time that night and the princess gasped again as they slowly followed the sight of the arm all the way up to the looming, frightening face of the Queen, who donned yet another smirk as she stood towering above the young lady in bed. Regina seemed bent on closing the distance between them, and leaned closer and closer while Aurora could only pull back so far until she hit the headboard.

One of their hands was trembling; Aurora hoped it was she, for now she could see plain as day the scar on Regina's upper lip and yet was no closer to turning off the light and letting the enigma that was the Queen disappear like bad dream. Regina paused in her pursuit to lower her hand away from the lamp. Effectively cornered, the princess turned away, her long auburn hair hopefully hitting Regina in the face, as light as it was. She faced in Phillip's direction, focusing specifically on him. She would not give Regina the satisfaction of seeing her squeeze her eyes shut in fear, nor would she succumb to the queen's advances even with the knowledge her beloved would never know.

A long moment passed. She would be lying if she said wasn't afraid to look in Regina's direction just in case the woman was waiting to surprise her with the kiss of death or any other spell that required such an intrusion of her personal space. After giving herself three tries to guess the amount of hairs on her husband's sweet, oblivious head, Aurora drew up the courage to peek, and did so, slowly turning her head.

Regina was laughing at her. She was practically on her knees by Aurora's bedside, still holding onto her wrist, head lazily resting on her arm, and _she was laughing_. How dare she!

"Quite the plucky one, aren't we?" she asked, whilst nodding to affirm her observation. The princess forcefully taking back her hand did nothing to damper her amusement. She gathered herself and got to her feet, that patronizing smile never once leaving her. "How about this? You take a minute to wake up, _Sleeping Beauty_ , and I'll go make the tea. Forget your crumpets. Meet me downstairs." She flashed her eyes. "That's an order, my dear."

She disappeared in a flash of dark purple smoke.

Finally, Aurora could exhale freely, and threw her head back in exhaustion, forgetting completely about the headboard not two centimeters behind her, and winced upon impact.

"Plucky..." she muttered to herself, rubbing the back of her head. Something told her this wasn't the first time she's been referred to as such, nor was it the first time she received a blow to the head in association with that word.

In other, better news, the lump in her throat was gone, as was the fear in her stomach. She was fine. The spell passed, and everything was to be okay.

Now, to see to what Regina wanted and she could go back to bed...

* * *

"Milk, sugar, or lemon?"

"Milk, please," Aurora answered quickly. She eyed Regina pouring it into her tea and cautiously accepted it when the woman finished stirring. In actuality she meant to say sugar, but even after freshening up the princess could not hide the yawn that escaped her almost immediately after splashing her face with cold water. Perhaps it had something to do with her still being in her nightgown. "Thank you."

Regina nodded, and watched her raise the cup to her lips. It would be rude to back out now, and the aroma was marvelous. It smelt of roses and... something she found hard to place.

"It's a special blend," said the queen, pouring herself another cup, "Differs each time you drink it, but I can guarantee it's not poisoned, if that's what you're thinking."

Swallowing her doubt, Aurora took a sip. Her eyes widened. "It's wonderful...!" she breathed, and eagerly finished her first. There was a strong, almost sickeningly sweet taste, and she knew no matter how long she waited, it would still be warm for her even if she tried it an hour after pouring out. It was probably infused with magic, no matter what Regina wanted her to believe, and that fact, for some reason, made her happy. She was no longer yearning to go back to bed, and tea did not work quite so fast. Perhaps coffee did with its enticing fragrance, but not for Aurora. Coffee just gave her headaches, and was bad for her (Ashley warned, being an addict herself).

The compliment earned Aurora her first genuine smile from Regina, and a second pouring. "Then you are lucky. Emma can't stand it."

" _Emma_ is not an ordinary princess." She shot guns, and sat like a prince on his lazy days, and her idea of entertainment was staring at the devil box's moving pictures all day on the couch.

Spirits rising, this brew was even sweeter and lovelier than the last. Regina's light laughter was a beautiful, relaxing sound, and Aurora found herself smiling, even _giggling_ along with her. Tea with Regina one-on-one was almost as pleasant as tea was with Ashley and Snow. The atmosphere was quiet, no distractions, and it wasn't hard to pretend they were the only two people in the realm because they were the only two awake.

Regina had the kind of eyes one would expect to find on one's child, or one's pet; there was so much love and so much trust, it was a comfort, and, because she was _the Queen_ , a privilege. She appealed to the sense of security and invites one in with a single look, and that _smile_. She had the prettiest smile. The scar did nothing to tarnish her beauty, might've even enhanced it.

"Aurora?"

"Hm?"

"I asked if you would like another cup of tea."

"Oh! No, thank you, Your Maje—Regina," Aurora started, placing her empty cup and saucer back on the doily on the tray. "I'm fine."

Quirking a brow, Regina placed a hand over her heart. "How informal of you, dear. I didn't think you even knew my name." Aurora nodded. "Hm." Finishing her last cup, Regina made the entirety of the tray and its contents vanish with a flick of her wrist. She settled into the armchair she was sitting in, crossed her legs, and laced her fingers together on her lap. "Now then... first..." she dropped contact yet again, but continued to speak. "I just wanted to say... I'm sorry... for what happened the first time we met."

The princess frowned, and cocked her head. "I'm sorry, _what_ happened?"

The Queen sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Maleficent happened."

"Maleficent..." Aurora breathed, trying to recall who that was, and let out a small gasp when the face of the horned she-devil came into her mind's eye. Just her name sent shivers down the spine, and like a guarded animal the princess felt her ears give a little... twitch. She stared in horror at the woman opposite her in the parlor, and wondered how the _hell_ she managed to make her forget the one whose curse tormented two generations of her family. Aurora clenched shaky fists, though in fear or anger, or both... she would let Regina guess.

"Are you apologizing on her behalf?" she tried to growl, eyes fixated on the carpet space between their feet.

She heard Regina swallow. "No, just on mine. I... I might've encouraged her, and I apologize for doing so. She was... a source of inspiration for me at the time, and I thought, if someone as powerful as her couldn't get her revenge, I never would. That's why she did it. Mostly for her, but a little for me too, to give me the first taste of the Maleficent I read about." She gave pause. Aurora looked up. "I was the one holding her staff near your door."

"I did not see you." The overwhelming, claustrophobic presence of the horned sorceress was too great to notice much of anything—or anyone—else. "But... thank you."

The queen visibly relaxed, shoulders drooping. "I got a front row seat. You get points for trying, but you ran right where she wanted."

Aurora nodded. "I knew exactly what I was doing, frightened as I was."

"Then why did you do it?!" Regina asked incredulously, almost shouting, "You just made it easier for her, like a moth to a flame!"

"Because I believed it could be undone, and it was." It was her turn to have the upper hand now as Regina sank back in her seat, heaving a loud sigh and still not understanding. The princess bit back a yawn; this was her moment, and it would not be ruined by weariness. She sat up straighter, and until Her Majesty prompted her to continue with another flash of her eyes Aurora did not speak.

"I was the price for my parents' safety, as well as my kingdom's. Even with his own curse Phillip never failed to return to me, not even when the wraith came, or when the Wicked Witch turned us into her... pets!"—Regina looked away—"My sacrifice at the hands of Maleficent was the first evil I ever faced; it will always remain a poignant matter of discussion with me, and I am still coming to terms with that. But now, I can take comfort in knowing that what happened to me will _never_ happen to my son.

"She's found her revenge in me, and it lasted a long time. Let that be enough for her." She took a deep, shaky breath. "A wise and very dear friend of mine once told me—no, _warned_ me it is dangerous to confuse vengeance with justice. Even now I have never learnt of what my parents did to offend Maleficent so greatly, but I pray she will leave us be." Her face darkened. "I know she's here."

The grandfather clock chimed twelve. Eyeing it, Regina stood and offered Aurora her hand, her teasing grin returning. Aurora's glower faded, and with the slightest of uncertainty, she took it.

"And she won't harm you anymore," purred the queen, positioning herself in such a way to allow the princess to rest her head on her shoulder. "I'll make sure of it..." she whispered into Aurora's hair.

An arm snaked its way around her waist and she relaxed, a soft grunt her only protest. She suddenly felt extraordinarily languid, and sleep again loomed over her mind and body as it did once long ago. Regina's voice was now far away, echoes.

"Allow me to escort you back to your chambers, Your Highness."

 _Sleep_... _so tired_... _can't walk_...

 _Phillip? No_... _Mulan_. _No!_ _Regina_...

Her feet were so heavy... no, her body was heavy; she could not stand on her feet. She was lifted off the ground and now she was floating. Someone was carrying her, and there was wind. No, smoke, it was smoke; sweet-smelling, like that of... apples. The tea was also with apples, she realized. Red apple roses.

She heard a pitiful whimper the moment her head touched the pillow and her body the mattress, and Aurora found it hard to even open her eyes. The lamp was still on (odd, she remembered she turned it off before she left...) bearable only because Her Majesty was in the way of the light, a finger tapping the tip of the princess's nose as a way to silence her, the redhead guessed.

She removed a glove and stroked Aurora's cheek with her bare, warm hand, thumb gently brushing over her lips.

"Goodnight, Aurora," Regina murmured, her low voice crystal clear, "I hope you enjoyed our tea."

With her last once of strength, Aurora nodded feebly and hummed a response. She watched the brunette draw up the covers to tuck her in, and felt soft lips press against her forehead the moment her eyes closed.

 _Goodnight, Regina_...


End file.
